Playing "the beautiful game"
When we played the Association Pierre Claver on Oct. 17, one of the first questions that we soccer players were asked is how we could possibly communicate on the pitch with everybody speaking different languages — English, French, Dari, Pashto, Arabic, and others.
But as I explained in my GAPS class, those of us who play soccer often know the rules even without words — it is why some people call soccer (or football here in France) “the beautiful game.”
Here below are three of the most basic soccer rules, translated for others who may play a multicultural game in the future.
I do believe that the only real way of learning rules is to play the sport. Throughout my years of experience playing soccer, I have never had to consult a book or website to understand the beautiful game. It has come naturally to me, as it should come after many years of practice and hard work.
Free kicks:
English: “A free-kick in football restarts a play after a foul or rule infringement is committed and is usually taken from the spot where the violation was committed. A free-kick can either be “direct,” in which case a kicker may score directly, or “indirect,” in which case another player must touch the ball before a goal can be scored.” (Source: Football Bible at https://www.football-bible.com).
Italian: Un calcio di punizione nel calcio ricomincia una giocata dopo un fallo e é di solito battuto nella stessa posizione di dove é stato commesso il fallo. Un calcio di punizione púo essere “diretto”, dove il battitore púo fare gol direttamente, o “indiretto,” dove un giocatore deve toccare la palla prima che si posso fare un gol.
French: Un coup franc est sifflé après une faute de jeu. Il sera tiré à l’endroit où celle-ci a été commise. Il existe deux types de coup franc: le coup-franc directe, en quel cas un joueur peut directement tirer au but, et le coup-franc indirect qui requiert une touche de balle avant de pouvoir marquer.
Arabic:
ركلة حرة في كرة القدم هي إعادة تشغيل المباراة بعد
تعدي على لاعب من لاعب الفريق الخصم أو حكم ملتزم ويؤخذ من المكان
الذي ارتكبت فيه المخالفة. ركلة حرة يمكن أن تكون
"مباشرة"، وفي هذه الحالة كيكر قد يسجل مباشرة، أو
"غير مباشرة"، وفي هذه الحالة لاعب آخر يجب أن
يلمس الكرة قبل أن يسجل الفريق.
Spanish: Un tiro libre en el football hace que el encuentro comience nuevamente luego de una infracción. El tiro libre se hace normalmente desde el lugar donde la infracción fue cometida. Un tiro libre puede ser “directo”, en cuyo caso el pateador puede marcar un gol con su tiro, o “indirecto”, en cuyo caso otro jugador que no sea el pateador debe tocar la pelota antes que un gol pueda ser marcado.
Real Madrid vs Barcelona Top 10 Goals & Skills 2016/YouTube
Match Duration:
English: “The length of a soccer match is 90 minutes, played in two equal halves of 45 minutes. Additional minutes in a soccer game may be played at the end of each half to compensate for lost time during the game.” (Source: Football Bible at https://www.football-bible.com).
Italian: La durata di una partita di calcio é di 90 minuti, giocata in due tempi da 45 minuti. Minuti addizionali si possono giocare alla fine di ogni frazione di tempo per compensare il tempo perso durante la partita.
French: Un match de football dure 90 minutes, soit deux mi-temps de 45 minutes. Des minutes de temps additionnel peuvent être ajoutées à la fin du temps réglementaire pour compenser les arrêts de jeu.
Arabic:
مباراة كرة القدم هي 90 دقيقة، لعبت في نصفين
متساويين من 45 دقيقة. دقائق إضافية في لعبة كرة القدم
قد تكون لعبت في نهاية كل شوط لتعويض الوقت
الضائع خلال المباراة.
Spanish: La duración de un encuentro de football ed de 90 minutos, que se juegan en dos tiempos de 45 cada uno. Se puede jugar tiempo adicional al término de cada tiempo para compensar el tiempo perdido durante el encuentro.
Penalty Kick:
English: “A penalty kick in football is awarded if a player commits a foul inside his own penalty area. The kick is taken from the penalty spot and all the players (except the kicker and the goalkeeper) must be outside the penalty area and penalty arc.” (Source: Football Bible at https://www.football-bible.com).
Italian: Un calcio di rigore nel calcio viene dato se un giocatore commette un fallo dentro all’area di rigore. La battuta si effettua dal dischetto di rigore e tutti i giocatori (ad eccezione del battitore e del portiere) devono restare fuori dall'area di rigore e dal semicerchio dell’ area.
French: Un pénalty est sifflé lorsqu’une faute est commise par un joueur dans sa propre surface de réparation. Ce pénalty sera tiré du point de pénalty une fois que tous les autres joueurs seront en dehors de la surface.
Arabic:
تمنح ركلة جزاء في كرة القدم إذا اللاعب ارتكب
خطأ داخل منطقة جزاء فريقه. يؤخذ من ركلة جزاء
وجميع اللاعبين (باستثناء اللاعب وحارس مرمى) ويجب
أن تكون خارج منطقة الجزاء وقوس الجزاء.
Spanish: Un penal en el football se cobra si un jugador comete una falta dentro del area grande. La patada se efectúa desde el punto del penal, y todos los jugadores (excepto el pateador y el arquero) tienen que quedarse afuera del área grande y el semicírculo del área grande.
—Sebastian Bertoni is a sophomore at the American School of Paris. He plays midfield on the varsity football team. His first language is Italian and he also speaks English and Spanish. He received translation assistance from ASP students Faisal al-Rashidi and Victor Pailloux, and Fernando Bertoni.
